The Irony
by Chellerbelle
Summary: Rogue and Gambit meet while in the queue to get the Cure.


**AN: **To make up for the fact that chapter 80 of The Air That I Breathe doesn't have Rogue or Gambit in it, I asked for some prompts for a one shot. **Typo Misspell** suggested "Rogue and Remy meet in line for the cure." Ironically, I feel like I've written the first chapter of a chapter-fic instead, heh.

Enjoy!

* * *

At first Rogue was relieved to get through the door of the clinic, but any hope she might have had of her time in the line getting shorter was shattered. It was standing room only, and the furniture had been arranged to create queue barriers. She could see at least three rows of people and couldn't see the other end at all.

She sighed and reminded herself that it would be worth it in the end. She would get the Cure and the nightmare her life had become would be over. She would finally be able to touch people again and no longer be haunted by the voices of those she touched chatting to her endlessly inside her head.

Movement from further down the line caught her attention. A tall man with eyes of red and black, sprung cards from one hand to another. His was speaking to a young woman in line in front of him, and she was looking bashful at his words.

Rogue watched the two, feeling a little strange witnessing their flirtatious exchange. On the one hand it seemed odd that there would be any flirting going on in the clinic, and on the other hand it was a reminder of all she wanted to have.

Her boyfriend Bobby had been spending time with Kitty lately. Rogue knew there was nothing going on. That is, she was 99% certain it was all friendly and that Bobby was just trying to help Kitty with her homesickness. But that 1% of her that doubted...

The line shifted forward the span of one person. Rogue was relieved to be out of the doorway.

Rogue continued to watch the man and woman, perversely intrigued by their actions. The man seemed to realised he was being watched, for he looked directly at her. Rogue cleared her throat uncomfortably and looked away until she could no longer feel his gaze.

She looked out the window. She could see the line behind her, continuing down the street. Another bus was parking outside, letting out more mutants wanting to be Cured. Beyond the bus, on the other side of the road were the mass of protestors. She swallowed and looked away from them. She didn't hate mutants or believe there was anything wrong with mutants in general, but there was definitely something wrong with herself, specifically.

The line moved forward and Rogue dared to glance at the flirtatious couple again. She was just in time to see the woman's face turn ashen with rage. She snarled something at the man, who shrugged it off with some casual remark that only served to make her angrier. She wagged her finger at him as she spoke, then turned her back on him. He spoke to her again, but she seemed to think that the back of the head of the person in front of her was far more interesting than whatever he had to say.

He seemed to realise that it was a lost cause. As he flipped his playing cards from one hand to the other again, he caught Rogue's gaze once more. He gave her a small but charming smile and a wink. Rogue smiled back uncertainly and looked away again.

A few more person-lengths forward later, and Rogue was in arm's reach of the red-and-black eyed mutant. It was hard to be certain how old he was, for he was dressed just as covered up as she was and he had stubble on his face. Still, Rogue thought that he couldn't be much older than herself. They may even be the same age.

"Bonjour ma chere," he greeted her, now that they were close enough to hear each other over the other light conversation and movement happening in the foyer.

"Um, hi," Rogue replied.

"I'm Remy," he said, stopping the springing of his cards long enough to hold his hand out to her. "And you are?"

Rogue glanced at his hand and almost reluctantly took it. "Marie."

"Pretty name for a pretty lady."

The woman in the line in front of Gambit overheard the exchange and turned her gaze on Rogue. "Ignore him. He's an asshole."

"Uh—" Rogue began.

"I've been called worse," Gambit replied with a shrug.

Rogue eyes locked with his. "Yeah. Haven't we all?"

The woman gave a dirersive snort and moved forward in the line as a gap opened up.

"Whatever did you say to her to piss her off?" Rogue asked him.

"I wish I knew. Then I'd know not to say it again," Gambit said. "Please, relieve my mind. If I inadvertantly piss you off, you will tell me why?"

Rogue smirked at him. "Oh sugar, you can be sure I will give you chapter and verse on it."

"Oh good," Gambit replied, grinning at her response. "I'd hate to think I might offend you without any chance of making amends. May I enquire why a Mississippi girl is all the way here in New York?"

Rogue might have been startled at his question, had not she took recognised his accent. "That depends. What brings a Lousianan Swamp Rat all the way here?"

"I travel a lot in my work," he said, and added slyly: "my little River Rat."

"Oh? What do you do?"

"Freelancing," he said. "And you haven't yet answered my question?"

Rogue shook her head. "Found out I was a mutant. Everyone freaked. Figured I should run off before they kicked me out."

He nodded in genuine understanding. "Going to go back after this?"

"No," Rogue said with certainty. "I can never go back."

"Yeah. Neither can I," Gambit agreed. "Still on the run, then?"

"Nah, I've found a new home with other mutants."

"Oh? You still going to have a home with them after this?" He might have asked if her mutant friends were in the line with her, but figured she would be talking to them rather than himself if they were.

"Well, yeah. They're still my friends." Rogue frowned, only then wondering at the possibility. "I know I have one for certain who would never turn his back on me. And my boyfriend..." Rogue hesistated, remembering Logan's words before she left. "I guess he'll probably think I'm doing this for him. I guess... I guess a lot of them will."

Gambit nodded, taking in her troubled expression and a little disappointed at the word 'boyfriend'. "Sometimes folks can't understand that it's not all about them."

"Yeah," Rogue said as smiled slyly. "So, are you actually a freelancer, or are you on the run?"

He grinned wickedly at her as the line moved forward once more, bringing them in line with each other. "Feels like both."

"I'll bet," Rogue said. "At least you're able to get work though. That would help a lot."

"It's nice to have a roof over my head occassionally," Gambit replied. "I mean, I'll sleep on the street if I have to, but I prefer to avoid it."

"Heh, yeah, I know the feeling."

Gambit nodded with grim understanding. "Yeah. I bet you do. How long were you on the run for?"

"Only about six months, actually, but it was a rough six months," Rogue said. "I'd been planning this trip along the Canadian border and into Alaska for after I was finish school. So I went on it a little early and with less money than I liked..." She shrugged wryly. "It wasn't quite the adventure I wanted to go on, but it worked out okay."

"Met up with these mutant friends of yours?"

"Yeah." She cocked her head at him. "What about you? How long you've been running for?"

Gambit gave a shrug. "Oddly enough, only a few months. My folks were fine with my mutation until it started flaring up..." His eyes tightened and Rogue suspected there was more to that than what he was prepared to say to a stranger. "Hey, they even adopted me as a kid with these eyes, y'know?"

"Well, I don't see why not," Rogue replied slyly. "Your eyes are amazing."

He grinned at her and turned his back slightly as the line moved forward once more.

"Why chere," he said cheekily. "Whatever would your boyfriend say?"

Rogue smirked at him, also turning so that she could continue to face Gambit. "He'd probably say they were cool too."

"Swings both ways does he?"

"I hope now. I'm having enough problems seeing him with other girls. I don't need to be worrying about him being with other boys too," Rogue replied, and seeing Gambit's raised eyebrows, waved a hand is dismissal and said: "Sorry, I just... I can't get close to anyone. I can't have skin contact with anyone without hurting them."

Gambti nodded slowly as she sighed.

"I know Bobby isn't cheating," she said, looking down at her gloved hands. "He wouldn't. But it doesn't make it any easier seeing him getting physically close to other people, knowing that we can't get that close."

"So that's why you're getting the Cure, huh?" Gambit asked.

"It's not just about touching Bobby though. It's about touching anyone." She smile forlornly as the words she'd said to Logan earlier came back to her. "A hug. A handshake. A kiss."

The line moved forward then, this time taking Rogue and Gambit out of comfortable conversation distance.

Rogue wondered why she was being so open with a total stranger. Yet, somehow, it didn't really seem so strange to speak of such things. After all, she was amongst a large group of mutants all choosing to get the Cure for one reason or another. How many of them had been kicked out of their homes too? Gone on the run? Felt that their mutation had ruined their life?

Part of Rogue wondered about that. How many were like herself, their mutations a curse that caused them nothing but pain? How many were here because of peer and public pressure, believing they were monsters?

The line continued to shuffle forward, leaving Rogue alone with her thoughts. The girl in front was busy reading something on her phone, and Rogue was tempted to do the same, only she didn't want to turn her phone on. If Logan hadn't already told the others at the school that she was gone, they certainly would have noticed on their own right now. She really didn't want one of them to call and try to talk her out of it or something.

She reached the bend in the line and glanced up ahead to next bend. Gambit had just moved around it and he threw her a grin when their eyes met. Rogue smiled back, finding herself looking forward to getting close to him again. She supposed she would ask him why he was getting the Cure, or perhaps what his interest was in playing cards. He was flipping a single card through his fingers as if it was an absent-minded habit.

Aware that he had an audience, Gambit started adding more variety to the card tricks he was doing. He found them soothing; particularly at the moment when he couldn't smoke. It was nice having a pretty girl to focus on too.

Eventually Rogue and Gambit were back in conversation rage again as their parts of the queue passed by each other.

"You're pretty good at that," Rogue said, gesturing to the cards in his hands.

"Thanks," Gambit replied, pleased. "Been doing card tricks since I was a kid."

Rogue nodded. "It shows. What got you started?"

"You know..." Gambit said slowly. "I'm not really sure now. I've been playing with cards for so long, I feel like I was born with a deck in my hand."

"That would have been one heck of a card trick."

Gambit chuckled. "You play cards, chere?"

"I have, but it's not really something I'm in the habit of," she replied. "So, how come you're getting the Cure?"

The smiled faded from his face, though he sprung the cards from one hand to another like nothing had changed.

"Same as you," he said quietly. "Can't control them."

Rogue regarded him seriously for a moment. "You like your powers, don't you? When you can control 'em, that is."

"Yeah. Not really sure I want to give 'em up but..."

"You're dangerous." It wasn't an accusation, just a simple, quiet statement of fact.

"Oh, I was always dangerous, ma chere," Gambit replied with a hint of his previous cocky demeanour.

Rogue smirked at him. "I'll bet. What exactly do you do?"

"I make things go boom."

"Ah." Rogue could see how that could be a dangerous mutation if left unchecked. "I absorb life force. I touch someone and I get their personality, knowledge, and if they're a mutant then I get to borrow their powers for awhile."

"Now, that could be fun," Gambit said with interest as the queue moved forward again, bringing them into alignment with each other. "Getting to use other people's powers."

"I admit, it's about the only think I'm going to miss when this is over," Rogue said ruefully.

Gambit nodded and gestured around the room. "So many mutants here. Imagine if you had all their powers at the same time."

"I think all the additional personalities in my head would give me one hell of a migraine."

"But it would be fun. Might be worth it," Gambit replied with boyish glee. "Could go out with a bang."

From anyone else Rogue might have been annoyed, but Gambit looked so mischievously delighted she couldn't be mad.

"I think I'll pass. I'd rather not put anyone into a coma," she said, only then realising she hadn't mentioned that part.

"Ah, yes, desole," Gambit replied sincerely. "Obviously you wouldn't want to hurt anyone."

"Right."

The queue began to move forward again, but instead of moving forward with the line, Gambit decided to climb over the barrier between them.

"You don't mind, do you?" he asked as those who had been behind him quickly moved forward. "I'm enjoying our conversation."

"Oh, no, not at all," Rogue said as they shuffled forward. "But you just lost your place..."

"No biggie," Gambit replied in dismissal. "I haven't completely decided if I'm going through with it yet, so yeah, more time to decide."

"You haven't?"

"Well, I like my powers," he said with a shrug. "And they've only been out of control a few months. Maybe they'll settle."

He didn't sound like the believed it, and they both knew it.

"Maybe." Rogue hesitated briefly, then barrelled on: "So, I kinda go to this school for mutants. It... well, they provide education for people like me—like us—who got kicked out of home or ran away. And they help us learn control too. Well, most of us. They haven't been able to help me, but maybe they could help you? You wouldn't have to give up your powers then."

"Why chere, are you asking me back to your place?" Gambit asked mischievously, even as he processed this new information in the back of his mind. "We've only just met."

Rogue laughed and gave him a nudge as they shuffled forward with the rest of the queue.

"Whatever will your boyfriend think?" he added teasingly.

"Excellent. Someone new to pull pranks on."

Gambit snickered. "I'll think about it."

"Good," Rogue said seriously.

"And now," Gambit said, "to change the subject completely..."

They discussed more trivial matters as they continued their long wait in the queue: movies, music, hobbies, and travel. Rogue was delighted wen she found out that Gambit had been overseas and he was more than happy to tell her about his various trips to Europe, with some judicious editing. Just as Rogue didn't feel the need to tell him about the X-Men, he didn't care to mention he was a professional thief.

But as distracting as the pleasant conversation and company were, Gambit couldn't completely avoid his anxiety. It continued to build up within him, made all the worst by the fact that intense emotions, especially things like anxiety, were more likely to cause him to charge something without meaning to.

He looked past Rogue towards the clinic windows, and winced as he felt some of the pressure within him release as one of the windows took on a magenta haze. A moment later, it exploded. The mutants in the queue by that part of the clinic screamed and covered their heads as glass fell around them. Someone cursed the protestors outside, while others sought to help the likely-injured mutants. Gambit closed his eyes and looked down.

"Was that you?" Rogue whispered near his hear, close enough to be heard, not enough to touch.

There was a long pause, then Gambit reluctantly replied: "Yeah."

"And you did that from over here?"

"Yeah. Used to need to actually touch the thing first though."

Rogue blanched. "I don't even want to think about what my life would be like if I absorbed everyone I so much as looked at."

"I'm surprised a sexy woman like you doesn't have men falling at her feet more often," Gambit replied with a grin that didn't quite meet his eyes.

"Oh? You didn't," Rogue retorted.

"Only because it's too crowded. There's no room to fall to the floor in awe of your incredible beauty."

Rogue gave Gambit a long look, then snickered. "You are such a dork, Swamp Rat."

"But I'm a sexy dork," he said slyly. "Devlishly handsome, even."

He immediately regretted his words, despite Rogue's amused reaction. The Cure would take away his eyes too, wouldn't they? What would his eyes look like then? Would he even recognise himself?

"Full of it, is what you are," Rogue said.

They once more fell into trivial conversation, discovering they had similar tastes and enjoying a little banter. Gambit couldn't relax, however, and his card ceased to soothe him. Those injured by his latest explosion were being tended to, the wound apparently superficial. Regardless, his guild gnawed at him.

He still didn't know if he should get the Cure or not. He liked his powers. The idea of shutting them off felt like cutting off an arm. Rogue's school gave him momentary hope, but what if they couldn't help him either? He couldn't go the rest of his life blowing things up every time he felt intense emtion.

They went around the third bend in the queue and Gambit closed his eyes. He felt like he was in danger of blowing something up again.

"You okay?" Rogue asked.

Gambit didn't reply at first. He had been unusually open already and blamed it on stress. He was reluctant to reveal anymore.

"I'm just resting my eyes," he replied blithely.

"Right," Rogue said in disbelief, glancing ahead in the queue. "One more coner and then it looked like we're at the form-filling out part of the queue."

"Yay," Gambit said blandly.

Magenta light flickered around his gloves for a moment, then promptly disappear as he reabsorbed the charge.

"Problem?" Rogue asked pointedly.

He didn't reply. He didn't want to admit he was having issues. He felt a charge threatening to form once more. Then he felt full lips pressed to his in an unexpected, chaste kiss. He kissed back, hauling her to himself with unrepentant eagerness.

Somewhere in the back of his mind a voice reminded him that Rogue couldn't touch without hurting, but he ignored it in favour of enjoying the moment.

The kiss was broken off when Rogue was zapped hard by some kind of intense static shock. She stared at his mouth as if seeing it for the first time.

"You know, chere," he said softly, feeling a lot more at ease than he was a minute ago, "I'm pretty sure that kissing another man definitely counts as cheating."

"Idiot," Rogue retorted, but her heart wasn't in the insult. "I was trying to absorb you, and kissing was faster than taking off my glove."

Her head was spinning, trying to comprehend what just happened. She tried to absorb him and failed. She felt like she was in a dream. Before Gambit could respond, she was kissing him again, her arms wrapped about his neck.

Gambit was more than willing to indulge her. She felt so completely right in his arms and the taste of her lips was sweet. He found she soothed the turbulent storm within him. He couldn't take things too far, even if he were so inclined, for not just negative intense emotions triggered accidental explosion.

Once again an intense static shock broke them apart. Rogue gasped for breath as she stared at him, barely noticing the forward movement of the queue.

"Desole, I'm not hurting you am I?" Gambit asked. He knew the shocks were coming from him. He could feel them, although he wasn't hurt by them.

Rogue's laugh held an edge of hysteria. "Usually I'm the one hurting people! Over a year! Over a year since I last touched anyone without hurting them..."

"Maybe you have your powers under control after all?" Gambit suggested.

"Then how could I touch you when I want to absorb you and not absorb you?" Rogue demanded. "It must be you. It's gotta be you. Somehow you're immune..."

It had to be a dream, Rogue was convinced of it. She found someone who was immune to her powers while in the queue to have her powers removed? The irony was painful.

"Hmm, must be fate. We're destined to be together," Gambit replied jokingly. "We should ditch this clinic and run away together."

For a moment, from the looked Rogue was giving him, Gambit wondered if she was actually going to agree to that. Then she shook her head and waged a finger at him.

"I don't think so, Swamp Rat," she said. "I want to touch everyone, not just you. And I'm sure as hell not going to take off from my friends."

"Pity," he said slyly. "You know... I think you might have absorbed me a little. I don't feel as charged up as I was."

Even as he said the words, he wasn't entirely sure if they were the truth or if he was just imagaining things.

Rogue's face brightened. "Oh yeah? That's good then. I wouldn't want there to be anymore accidents—and I'm sure you don't want that either."

"Yeah, that would suck," Gambit replied, licked his lips, and then he was the one to kiss her.

Rogue knew that she shouldn't. She had no business repeatedly kissing Gambit like this, especially when she was already on edge about Bobby spending time with Kitty. Bobby and Kitty may have gotten up close and personal a few times, but he'd never actually kissed her or anything.

Again Rogue was zapped, but this time there was nothing more than a momentary jerk before she was kissing Gambit again. She knew she shouldn't be doing this. It was completely wrong. Even forgetting Bobby, she'd only met Gambit that day. Yet despite telling herself how much she shouldn't be doing this, she couldn't seem to stop herself.

There was another shock, and they pulled apart again. Gambit felt a little guilty. Not just for hurting her, accidental though it may be, but he also couldn't escape the thought that he was essentially taking advantage of her.

They shuffled forward in the queue again, then Rogue laid her forehead on his shoulder. It felt so good to be standing there with his arms around her, not needing to worry about accidental skin contact.

"We really need to stop this," she said.

"Yeah, best if we don't get carried away," Gambit replied, meaning those words for both their sakes.

"I mean, if you really think it's helping, then sure, kiss away. It's much safer for everyone else if I don't take my gloves off," Rogue said, knowing that, as crowded as it was, she was really only making excuses.

"Right," Gambit said agreeably, while planning to kiss her again at least once, maybe two or three times before they got to the end of the queue. Perhaps four. He couldn't be too greedy.

There was a moment's pause, then Rogue pulled away from him, mentally berating herself for her behaviour. Was this an indication of what it was going to be like once she got the Cure? She hoped that she'd be able to adapt to touching people again quickly.

Gambit restarted the conversation, chatting about trivial things once again in order to prevent things for getting awkward. He prudently decided to refrain from flirting. Rogue willingly participated in the change of subject, not wanting to dwell on her behaviour, let alone the fact that she wanted to kiss again.

Soon, she told herself. Soon she would be Cured and then she could go home and kiss Bobby to her heart's content.

The queue continued to move forward at it's plodding pace, and at long last they reached the final bend. Seeing those in front in various states of filling out forms, Gambit felt a jolt of panic. He still didn't know what to do. Did he get the Cure or go to this school of Rogue's? If this school even existed...

His lips found Rogue's again, honestly wanting her to quell his anxiety. She kissed him back, and continued to kiss him until a static shock drove them apart once more.

"I should not be enjoying this so much," Rogue muttered, looking down at the group.

"Oh, I'm not enjoying this at all," Gambit said, and placed his hand over his heart. "I'm only doing this out of the interest of public safety."

Rogue raised her eyebrow and gave him a long look, then snorted. "Right. Public safety."

He grinned wickedly, and might have said something more, but the secretary approached them and those around them with a collection of clipboards.

"I need you to fill these out please," she said.

Rogue and Gambit and a couple around them accepted the clipboards. Before they could do more than glance at the forms, they had to move along further as those at the front of the queue were called.

They didn't start filling out the forms immediately, but rather waited until the queue had progressed enough for them to be at the forward-facing chairs that had been set up as queue barriers. As soon as she was seated, Rogue began the task of filling out the form with eagerness and relief, as well as a little nervousness. Gambit simply read his form, unwilling to put pen to paper.

"Chere, this school of yours," he asked finally, not lifting his eyes from the form. "How would they help me get my powers under control?"

"Practice mostly, so you can probably guess why I'm not having much luck," Rogue replied as she continued filling out hers. "We also look into the practical science behind out mutations. So, Bobby's cryokinetic, and he researches—or is supposed to research—ice. What it can do, what it can't do, how it effects other materials. That kind of thing. And we help each other where we can too."

She stopped short of mentioned Professor Xavier, who had died so recently.

"Right, so not really much more than I've already been doing." Gambit sounded disaapointed.

Rogue glanced up at him. "We also have a special training room which I know you wouldn't have had access to anywhere else. It's a safe environment for using destructive powers. You could let loose the biggest explosion you've got and it won't leave the room."

Gambit's eyebrow twitched. "That sounds like a challenge."

Rogue grinned at him. "Maybe it is."

Gambit chuckled and Rogue went back to filling out her form. Gambit glanced at again again, then looked down the queue. He handed it to the next person in line without one, much to their surprise. Gambit didn't bother offering an explanation.

Shortly after Rogue's form was completed, the secretary came aorund to collect. Names continued to be called out, and Rogue got closer and closer to the front of the queue. While Gambit had felt a profound calm once he'd made the decision to go to the school, Rogue got more and more nervous. Seeing her growing anxiety, Gambit took her hand in his. Rogue smiled appreciatively at him.

At last, Rogue's name was called. Still holding her hand, Gambit followed her in, explaining to the nurse that he'd come along for morale support, and was it okay if he came in with her. The nurse was fine with that.

There was a brief consultation to begin with, simply reviewing the mutantion-specific information on the form Rogue had filled out. Then the Cure was brought out and Rogue, who was already seated, held out her arm for the injection.

Everyone's attention was so focused on Rogue's injection, that no one noticed what Gambit was doing.

"Alright, that's it. You're free to go home."

"I don't really feel much different," Rogue said slowly.

"It may take a little while to kick in. I'd offer to let you stick around, but unfortunately, we don't have the room."

"I noticed."

The nurse handed her a business card. "If you have side effects, or just concerns, call this number. But I'm sure you'll be fine."

Rogue nodded as she accepted the card. "Thanks."

The nurse showed them out of the office and indicated the way t the back exit (which was really the only way out), and the three parted.

"So," Gambit said as they headed out. "You really don't mind me coming home with you?"

"I really don't mind," Rogue replied.

"You don't know me though. I might turn out to be some kind of predator."

"I don't need mutant powers to kick your ass."

"Good thing too, since they didn't work on me," Gambit said with a teasing twinkle in his eye as they left the building.

"I think so too," Rogue said as she pulled out her phone and turned it back on. She blanched at the number of missed calls and texts that came up.

"Something wrong?"

"Oh just my friends trying to contact me," she said, and smirked at him. "And now that it's too late for them to try to talk me out of getting Cured, I think I should call 'em back and let them know I'm on my way home and brining someone with me."

Gambit grinned at her. "Smart girl."

As Rogue made her call, Gambit reached into his pocket and fingered the handful of vials of the Cure he had secreted there. If it turned out this school of Rogue's couldn't help him, he could still Cure himself. At the very least, having the Cure on him meant that he should be able to curb any build up of anxiety based on his lack of control. Knowing he had a way out that he could make use of at any time would make a huge difference. And if it turned out that he was able to get control, then he would have one extra vial to sell on the blackmarket. It was win-win really.

"Okay," Rogue said, hanging up as they approached the nearest busstop. "That's that taken care of. So if you do decide to jump me and leave my unconscious body lying in a gutter, they know where to find me. And who to go looking for. And I can guarrentee you, one of my friends will gut you to ribbons when he finds you."

"If he finds me," Gambit replied his cheerful tone matching Rogue's own.

"No, when. He's very good at finding people."

"And I'm very good at hiding from them."

Rogue laughed. "I can believe that." She eyed him thoughtfully. "Are you going to be okay? Y'know, on the trip there?"

Gambit shrugged. "Intense emotion seems to be the trigger so if I can stay relaxed, I should be okay. And knowing there's another option helps." He grinned at her. "Believe me, sex is far from my mind right now."

"Clearly not that far. You were the one who brought it up."

"Touché."

"Intense emotion huh?" Rogue said. "You know, I know just the person to teach you."

"Oh?"

"Storm." Rogue nodded. "Her mutation is weather control. She needs to keep a tight reign on her emotions or I'm told the weather goes nuts."

"You're told?"

"I've never seen her lose control."

"Huh, well, that's encouraging," Gambit said slowly, honestly feeling that way. "Weather can be pretty destructive too."

Although he knew other mutants existed, he'd never really considered that anyone else might have the same problems as himself.

"Yeah," Rogue agreed.

Gambit grinned and wrapped an arm around her. "I do believe meeting you has been the highlight of my year."

"Aww, aren't you a charmer?"


End file.
